This invention relates to a color flame lighting device, more specifically a color flame candle or a color flame candle lamp, and method of making the same.
In modern society, candles and lamps are no longer simple lighting tools. Instead, they have become ornaments and have been widely used for occasions such as birthday parties or Christmas celebrations to give the proper atmosphere. In an attempt to improve the decorative properties of candles, color flame candles have been invented.
A currently available color-flame candle is a solid device made of paraffin wax plus a small amount of metal salt as color-making agent. The technology of production is rather complex and the cost is high. These candles leave residues after burning, such as wax, and the quality of the flame color is relatively poor.
Another available color-flame candle is disclosed in Chinese Patent No. ZL90101749. Chinese Patent No. ZL90101749 discloses a method of making a color flame candle which aims to solve the above-mentioned problems. This kind of color flame candle uses methanol, ethanol or butanol as the major liquid incendiary agent contained inside the candle. At the top portion of the inner layer of the candle there is a color-making plate, and the color-making candlewick is set in the annular downward curve of the plate, an incendiary wick placed tangent to the center of the candle body. The working principle is that the major incendiary agent inside the inner layer of the candle provides the incendiary wick the needed fuel. When the wick and the incendiary ion of the wick inside the color-making plate burn at the same time, the flame will produce the desired color. However, experiments have shown that this method of producing color flame candles may have one or more of the following problems.
First, The color-making wick and incendiary wick are both made of cotton, processed with rather complicated chemical methods. Considering that cotton is a flammable substance, when the candle is burning, the major incendiary agent of the wick and the cotton wick will produce a yellow flame which in turn makes the color of the flame impure. Additionally, the production process is rather complex, and the cost is high. Second, this kind of candles uses alcohol, a volatile material, as its major incendiary agent. There is no hermetically sealed device for the incendiary agent. The incendiary agent will evaporate completely with time, rendering it useless. Moreover, the inner layer of this kind of candle is made of heavy gypsum, cement or ceramic material, which increase the weight of the candle. Therefore it is difficult to produce small and elegant birthday candles for use with a birthday cake. Finally, two separate wicks, i.e., the incendiary wick and the color-making wick, are required since the incendiary agent and color-making agent of the candle are not mixed together. These two wicks are processed differently, which increases the complexity and cost of production. Consequently, mass production of the color-flame candles is difficult.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a new or improved color-flame candle or candle-lamp.